Happy Friday everyone. Habbajeeba, we made it through the week! Today In Nascar History Dec 11, 1955: West Palm Beach Speedway, a half-mile track in Florida, hosted the fourth race of the 1955 season on this day with an estimated attendance of 4,500 race fans. Joe Weatherly crossed the finish line first followed by Jim Reed, however both failed post-race technical inspection. That gave the win to third-place finisher Herb Thomas (No. 92 Chevy) who banked $1,100. It would be the first of five wins for the driver from Olivia, N.C. Al Keller finished second will Billy Myers third. Quote of the Year There's an unwritten rule in NASCAR: Thou shalt not take on Dale Earnhardt Jr. --Terry Blount/espn
Countdown to Daytona 66 Comments from the Peanut Gallery From George Momma, you write in one of your articles that former TNT host Bill Weber lost his job over a public incident. My question is what public incident? I never heard of this. Thanks George George, Rumor has it that Bill got totally drunk and got into a fight with one of the head guys at TNT. Because this has never been confirmed and the people in question have never said anything, I can't be sure that this is the truth. If I'm telling stories out of school, my apologies to those in question. Bits and Pieces Schrader still racing: Ken Schrader told me [Dustin Long] that after he races this weekend, he will have competed in 82 races this calendar year. That's down from the 119 he ran two years ago but is still quite impressive. Why "only'' 82 races this year? Looks like Farm Bureau Insurance sponsorship is done: in a recent newsletter from Farm Bureau Insurance, it was posted: As the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season comes to a close, so does Farm Bureau Insurance's sponsorship relationship with Joe Gibbs Racing. We want to thank Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano and David Gilliland, and all of our loyal fans and customers for your support. Sponsoring a JGR car in six races: Darlington, Atlanta (2nd), Charlotte (2nd), Martinsville (2nd), Texas (2nd) and Homestead. Once again, all of us at Farm Bureau Insurance would like to thank our fans. It was great seeing you at the track, and it has been a truly rewarding experience working with the professional and dedicated team at Joe Gibbs Racing in both the 2008 and 2009 sponsorships of the NASCAR Nationwide and NASCAR Sprint Cup series. This will be the last correspondence from Farm Bureau Insurance Racing. (farmbureauinsuranc Kentucky Speedway's appeal rejected Associated Press LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A federal appeals court has rejected claims by a Kentucky track that NASCAR violates federal antitrust laws by keeping it off the premier racing circuit. The decision issued Friday by a three-judge panel from the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ends, for now, Kentucky Speedway's legal efforts at forcing NASCAR to bring a Sprint Cup race to the northern Kentucky track. The panel said Kentucky Speedway failed to prove NASCAR and International Speedway Corp. worked together with other tracks to keep the Kentucky track from getting a Sprint Cup race. Kentucky Speedway sued NASCAR in 2005 after being rejected multiple times for a top level race. The race track, about halfway between Louisville and Cincinnati, has drawn huge crowds to some of its other races. Five non-Danica storylines to watch, including the Mayfield case Tom Bowles/si.com Once Danica Patrick officially unveiled her stock car plans Tuesday, the rest of NASCAR's news got buried under "Danica-Mania" faster than half the country got buried under the snow. Don't get me wrong here -- Danica's decision is one of those "once-in-a-blue- 1) Will There Be 43 Full-Time Teams On The Grid? For a second straight year, a tough economy has meant contraction is the name of the game. Over 150 people were let go from an RPM-Yates merger after the season, and the number of layoffs in NASCAR's top three series, while smaller than last year, is at least 250 by my count. The tough part is that it's not done yet. Current garage buzz centers on the possible shutdown of RCR's fourth car, the No. 07, whose primary sponsor (Jack Daniel's) left the sport at the end of the 2009 season. Casey Mears is still contracted to drive but is seeking other opportunities with his future unclear; the team has set a mid-January deadline to get a full-time sponsor or shut down. Like several others, the team has the benefit of using NASCAR's Top 35 rule to its advantage --its finish in 2009 owner points guarantees it a spot on the grid for the first five races. But Vice President of Competition Mike Dillon says the team won't show up with an unsponsored car, claiming it's an "all or nothing" proposition beyond the Daytona 500. "If we don't run the whole season," he told SI, "we won't run the first five races." The No. 07's decision could have a huge impact on Team Red Bull (TRB). Right now, the No. 82 car (Scott Speed) is 36th in owner points but would receive that "locked in" spot if the No. 07 stops showing up. But in the end, TRB may not need to worry; several other teams are set to disappear in front of them. The No. 44 (shut down in the wake of the RPM-Yates merger), the No. 26 (shut down by Roush in order to comply with NASCAR's four-team rule), and the No. 96 (no team, no sponsor, no driver) are among those who'll give up a spot on the grid in 2010. What makes it tricky is that the sport has allowed car owners the chance to "sell" their spot on the grid to the highest bidder. Typically, new teams would be knocking down the door to buy a place on the grid, but right now, there's simply no one with the funding to buy them. Just three "new" teams have announced they'll step up to full-time competition in 2010, and all are single-car, underdog operations without the cash to buy their way in. Most importantly, with four teams leaving, NASCAR finds itself with one less car on the track -- not something it needs to see when it already had six "start and park" teams filling the back of the grid to end 2009. Unless the sport recruits new owners with funding, expect that ugly practice to continue starting at California, where cars qualify only to pull off after a few laps in the race while collecting hard-earned fans' money for their "effort." Unless the sport recruits new owners with funding, expect cars to pull off after a few laps in the race while collecting hard-earned fans' money for their "effort." 2) Is Kyle Busch Making Himself Vulnerable? Stock car's "Bad Boy" has scheduled a Friday press conference to announce he's becoming a car owner in NASCAR's Truck Series. Following in the footsteps of Cup stars like Kevin Harvick, Busch will run at least two trucks out of his shop -- he'll run one himself in a handful of races while setting up the second to challenge Harvick's Ron Hornaday for the season championship. This is a move Busch has wanted to make for two years, but it comes with curious timing. After Busch missed the Chase just one year after leading the points, critics were already questioning whether he spreads himself too thin by moonlighting in Nationwide and Truck. Now, he has less than two months to put together a championship Truck team? The management group Busch puts in place will be crucial (he's off to a good start by tabbing championship crew chief Rick Ren to lead the effort), but even then, how could Busch stay away if the trucks start off struggling? The whole scenario provides another distraction for Busch on the verge of contract talks where he makes his real money (his deals with Joe Gibbs Racing and Cup sponsor M&M's expire after 2010). And with Denny Hamlin rising up as JGR's No. 1 threat to Jimmie Johnson's dominance, Busch suddenly doesn't have the leverage he once did for temperamental behavior that wears out his crew. Don't forget, it only took Busch a couple of months to go from the penthouse to the outhouse at his last job with Hendrick Motorsports, so how he juggles responsibility over the short-term bears serious watching. 3) The Jeremy Mayfield Case. The drug case NASCAR wants to go away could wrap up within a few weeks, as Judge Graham Mullen is expected to rule on a motion by the sanctioning body to dismiss the case. But if he doesn't, it's full speed ahead towards a trial with Tiger Woods-sized tabloid headlines. CEO Brian France is already scheduled for a Jan. 19 deposition, and other top officials will follow suit. Mayfield has hired one of the most famous celebrity defense attorneys in the country, Mark Geragos, and he will work the media as dates draw closer. Geragos has already been poking around at France's pending divorce lawsuit with his wife, and she'll likely give a deposition in the case before all is said and done. And trust me, France isn't the only NASCAR official whose private life will be pulled apart with a fine-toothed comb. Bottom line, if there are any hidden secrets about drugs in the NASCAR garage, there are dozens of people with nothing to lose looking to air that dirty laundry in public. It's the type of case the sport would usually settle out of court ... except Mayfield steadfastly refuses as his career is already ruined by the failed drug test for methamphetamines that led to this whole case in the first place. Stay tuned... 4) Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s Attitude. By all accounts, Dale Jr. wasn't a big player at the season-ending banquet in Las Vegas. He only traveled into town to receive the sport's Most Popular Driver Award and then disappeared back into the abyss. Heck, he wasn't even at his own team's announcement that Danica Patrick will be on his roster in 2010. How strange that a story to watch is based on how much Dale Jr. stays out of the news. But after the worst season of his career (25th in points, just five top 10 finishes); it's the best strategy for a man who'd lost both the passion and confidence to compete by season's end. For Earnhardt to recover, he needs to get over this year the way he would get over an ex-girlfriend -- maybe travel to a deserted island where no one knows him, relax on the beach with friends, and clear his head. He has Rick Hendrick switching around engineers on the No. 88 and sister Kelley Earnhardt Elledge to run the Danica transition. So why should he show his face? If the next time we hear from Junior is Speedweeks, we'll know he's on the road to recovery. But if he's driven in 1,000 different directions before then, I don't see that passion getting a chance to return. 5) Where's The New Blood? As of now, Raybestos will be giving its Rookie of the Year trophy to ... a fan on eBay come November. Barring a last-minute switch, for the first time since 1992 there aren't any rookies signed up. Danica provides a nice cover-up, but the fact remains that she's the only new face to market in a series that's seen its freshmen win just twice in the last three years. All sports go through a down cycle when it comes to new talent, but in this fast-changing world, the same selection can quickly get stale without new challenges. There are just a handful of rookies in Nationwide and Trucks, and the sport needs to tackle new initiatives aimed at redeveloping the pipeline of talent. Among the former "up-and-coming" stars still looking for a job this offseason are Landon Cassill, Brad Coleman, Stephen Leicht, Cale Gale and Bryan Clauson ... the list could fill a week's worth of columns in itself. BOWLES BITS One small note on Danica before we go. Love or hate the decision, it's hard to deny the marketing value she brings to the sport. I talked to the people who run the Davie Brown Index (DBI), a list comparing 2,800 major celebrities and their marketing value. Right now, Patrick ranks #661 on the list, trailing only Jeff Gordon (#332) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (#368) in NASCAR circles, which is due, in part, to her limited audience via the IRL. In comparison, no other driver (Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Tony Stewart) is better than #985 as their likability fails to translate over a national audience. And check this out: in the endorsement category, Patrick jumps up to #283. She is the rising star NASCAR needs: a fresh, trusting face to lure more products -- and fans -- into the sport. Danica's Demeanor Could Ruffle NASCAR Fans' Feathers Rebecca Gladden/insiderraci If you prefer your female sports figures on the feisty side, then I have good news for you: Danica Patrick is coming to NASCAR. And make no mistake about it. Ms. Patrick is a spitfire. Meeting with the media at Chase Field in Phoenix Tuesday to announce her NASCAR plans, Patrick bristled when a reporter posed this question: "You're going to be racing against guys like Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. Your thoughts of going up against these guys in the Nationwide tour?" "And …?" Patrick retorted. "Okay, I'll try and make up what I think you asked me. 'I'm going to be racing against some very competitive drivers.' That's a fact. That's a statement." She went on to explain that the opportunity to race against NASCAR's finest will be a "good teaching mechanism." But, her initial reaction to a fairly straightforward question seemed a bit -- for lack of a better term -- diva-like. Perhaps years of fighting an uphill battle for success and parity in the male-dominated world of motorsports has fostered a certain assertiveness in the 27-year-old IndyCar driver. But, Danica has been more than willing to trade on her sex appeal, as evidenced by her overtly suggestive TV ads for primary sponsor GoDaddy.com. It's a theme that company CEO Bob Parsons emphasized early on in Tuesday's press conference. Before Danica unveiled her new No. 7 GoDaddy.com NASCAR ride, which sat side-by-side with her Indy car, Parsons remarked, "Both of these, you've got to admit, are pretty hot-looking cars, don't you think?" "I do," Patrick concurred. Parsons was excited to discuss the next series of racy TV ads featuring Danica which will premiere during the 2010 Super Bowl. "Danica's first stock car event is the ARCA race in Daytona on February 6, and that's the Saturday before the Super Bowl," he explained. "The next day, in the Super Bowl, Danica will appear in two Go Daddy ads … Over the years, we've developed a reputation for having a certain type of ad, and I'm here to tell you that this year, we won't let you down." Danica seems to acknowledge the uphill battle she faces in NASCAR, a sport that has promoted itself as traditionally family-friendly, but seemed unconcerned about fans who might not welcome her. "I really don't think a lot about that kind of stuff," said Patrick. "Everybody is entitled to their own opinion and that's fine with me. My job is to prove to all the people that are around me that I'm committed, that I want to do this, that I'm willing to put in the right amount of effort. And that's all I have to do." Though anxious to succeed in NASCAR, Patrick made it clear that, for now, "Indy Racing is my first priority." She will run a partial Nationwide Series schedule in 2010 and, though the exact dates have not been determined, races will be selected around her IndyCar schedule. Meanwhile, both Patrick and JR Motorsports team co-owner Kelley Earnhardt played up the female factor Tuesday, which Danica described as "an exciting story." "As a female team owner, I'm thrilled to have her on board," said Earnhardt. "We're going to have a lot of fun and rock the world."
Experience, energy makes Martin a unique driver by Rea White, NASCAR Scene, Special to FOXSports.com Mark Martin brings a unique combination to racing. He's a tenacious and classy racer on the track but also a detail-oriented guy off of it. He's a veteran of the sport who brings a wealth of knowledge to any group and a man profoundly committed to helping other drivers make inroads into the sport. On top of it all, he's a pure talent who has shown the ability to adapt to the increasingly aggressive and competitive world of NASCAR Sprint Cup racing over the years. This year, that combination of talents netted Martin his fifth runner-up finish in the Cup series and five wins in his debut season with Hendrick Motorsports. He and his Alan Gustafson-led team gained momentum over the course of the year, led the standings during the Chase for the Sprint Cup and was the only outfit mathematically capable of challenging teammate Jimmie Johnson in the season finale. It's clear the impact going to Hendrick has had on Martin. After two years of part-time racing, he was rejuvenated and showed an enthusiasm for the sport belying his almost 30 years of competition. Martin, 50, gained new life in the sport. What may be less obvious is the impact he had on Hendrick Motorsports — and how that played into both this year's championship race and his future role in the organization. Not only are Hendrick crew chiefs Gustafson and Chad Knaus, who won his fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup title with Johnson, childhood fans of Martin, but they also seem thrilled to be working with him this season. They are pleased with the overall performance gains of the No. 5 team this season, and they are also impressed with the way Martin has helped the entire organization raise its level of competition. Already among the top organizations in the sport, Hendrick reached new heights this season as Johnson won the title and Martin and Jeff Gordon took the next two spots for the first sweep ever of the top three positions. Part of that success, and the promise for 2010, comes from the philosophies Martin has woven into the team. He has found a way to perhaps get even more valuable information and input from four-time champions Johnson and Gordon. "I think he brings great experience, not only from a motorsports side of things but life experiences, "And I think when we get together with Mark as a group, a lot of the drivers will come in discouraged and be just like, 'Man, that's all I've got,' or even Mark could possibly do that. What ends up happening is they start to discuss it, and they're like, wow, that's what my car is doing, too, and they start to feed off of that, and then Mark starts to influence those guys, just like, you know, 'Guys, we can get through this; we can do this.'" Knaus says that Martin has a way to not only put a positive spin on things but also to make it clear that everything is merely a step in the process. In racing, one is never done with anything — there are always improvements to be made. Martin embraces that philosophy and encourages others to do the same. "You're never done working on it," Knaus says of Martin. "It could always be better. It's just time to go race. "And I think he brings a lot of that mentality to where we're like, 'Look, we're going to work on it until the last lap of the race and try to make it better.' He's got that desire that not a lot of people have." Gustafson concurs. He says that Martin, for all his vast experience, knows what he wants in the car and knows what he needs in the car. He helps the team diagnose its own issues. Having Martin and Johnson in the same group, offering input that is shared by all, is invaluable to a championship- "There's been a lot of times during the year that the 48 (of Johnson) and the 5 (of Martin) have been very similar or the 24 (of Gordon) and the 5 have been very similar," Gustafson says. "All four cars (including teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr.) have been similar. To watch Mark have the dialogue with those other drivers and when you get a guy like Mark Martin and a guy like Jimmie Johnson on very similar equipment, getting their feedback is just priceless. It allows us to take things so much further, and with the lack of testing, you don't have that benefit if you have a rookie driver or drivers that don't have the experience or the intelligence level or the ability that those two have. They're two of the best. "So it's really neat to be involved with that, when you get the four talented drivers we have, get them on similar equipment and then listen to how each one of them will dissect the car differently, and I think Mark does as good a job with that as anybody." When team owner Rick Hendrick looks at Martin, he sees a man with uncanny similarities to Johnson. They both bring a strong work ethic and ability to dissect things to the sport. Putting them together has only heightened the competitiveness of their teams. "They're as close to being identical as any two I've ever been around," Hendrick says. "They are both students of what it takes both in the car and outside of the car. And their dedication to excellence, it's remarkable. Their talent speaks for itself. ... They just are never satisfied without everything around them being as perfect as it can be. They put all of the load on their shoulders." Martin says he just likes the camaraderie among those involved with his new program. He sees key assets within the group, including the ability to work together through both setbacks and triumphs. "We support each other 100 percent," he says of his team. "That's a mature team, and I, through all the years, have some maturity as a driver, and whenever things turn bad for either one of us we're there for each other. Never a group that would point fingers at one another. We're all in it together." And now, they are looking forward to another run at the title next season. Martin spent this season speaking of how he felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the racing world once more. At the end of the year, as he fell just 141 points shy of finally winning his first title, he continued to carry a boyish enthusiasm for the season. Now, Martin is ready to go once more. Martin points out that he's already looking forward to next season — a feeling somewhat unfamiliar to him. "This is the first time in as long as I can remember that I'm not glad it's over with," he says. "I'm fine. I've had a blast all year, and I do look forward to starting with a clean slate." Waid's World A NASCAR BLOG BY Steve Waid A funny thing happened at the 1981 Cup awards ceremony That the NASCAR Awards Ceremony was held in Las Vegas for the first time this year is something that, long ago, few could have imagined. You might find this a bit hard to believe, but at one time, the event that honored NASCAR's Cup champion was something decidedly unglamorous. For years it was held in a Daytona Beach hotel during Speedweeks in February. It was open to the fans, but most of them didn't care to attend. Nor did the media. The only one I went to, kicking and screaming, was in 1981 when Dale Earnhardt received recognition as the 1980 champion. To give you an idea of how informal the affair was, Earnhardt wore jeans. Turns out that was the last time NASCAR held its awards ceremony in Daytona. Later that year it was announced that it would be moved to the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. In December. Few thought New York was appropriate for NASCAR. It was a regional sport based in the Southeast and had absolutely no presence in the Big Apple. But the boss – Bill France Jr. – wanted to widen NASCAR's scope. He wanted to put it on a national stage and the best place for that was in the media capitol of the world. Rest assured the New York media couldn't have cared less about NASCAR in 1981 and snubbed it completely. That would eventually change. The first event in New York was a simple one. It wasn't formal, it didn't come with receptions and press conferences, and it certainly wasn't held in the Waldorf's spectacular Grand Ballroom. It was held in the Starlight Roof, which is far less opulent, and much smaller, than the Grand Ballroom. But that didn't matter to the media – hardly. They eagerly anticipated the event. Remember, the motorsports media of the day was composed almost entirely of guys from the South, most of whom delighted in the prospect of getting to New York and taking in the sights – among other things, of course. My buddies Tom Higgins of the Charlotte Observer and "Ol' Weird" Harold Pearson of the Richmond Times-Dispatch and I hooked up in New York and were determined to have as much fun as possible. We did some sightseeing, bought souvenirs, and I'm pretty sure we hit just about every pub on Second Avenue. We stood outside the Waldorf and looked to the sky with our mouths agape – seemingly fascinated with the skyscrapers - hoping that passers-by would stop and do the same thing. No one did. But one couple did pause near us, and Higgins spotted them. He didn't miss a beat. "That there building sure would hold a lot of corn, wouldn't it?" he said in his deepest Southern drawl. The couple cracked up. OK, we weren't the models of maturity. On the night of the ceremony we put on suits and headed for the Starlight Roof after a stop at Sir Harry's Bar. A couple hundred people might have attended the event, and they were almost entirely males. As best as I can recall, the only female there was Alexis Leras, then NASCAR's public relations director. Barney Hall of MRN Radio was the emcee and he sat at the head table along with France, Cup champion Darrell Waltrip, his team owner, Junior Johnson, and officials from NASCAR and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., the series sponsor. Because there were no videos, entertainment or speeches from the top 10 drivers, things moved along rather rapidly. Even so, Higgins had to use the rest room. He got up and left. Time passed – a lot of time – and he didn't return. Pearson and I grew concerned. Was Higgins back at Sir Harry's? Was he lost? We started a manhunt. Higgins wasn't in the rest room. He wasn't in Sir Harry's. He wasn't in the lobby or back in his room. Good grief, had he been kidnapped? Finally I spotted a door tucked away in a recess at one of the walls in the Starlight Roof. I opened it and looked down a long, dark, narrow hall. I thought I heard something in the distance. It was a low, rumbling voice that was followed by gales of laughter. I heard these sounds more than once before I finally entered a kitchen. There stood Higgins, surrounded by the Greek waiters who had served us. They were laughing because Higgins was telling them tall tales and how, in Leras, NASCAR had its own "Greek goddess." Higgins can strike up a conversation with a cigar store Indian. To this day, I don't know how he got into that kitchen, unless he thought it was the rest room. It wasn't long after 1981 that the awards ceremony moved to the Grand Ballroom and became a huge formal event attended by thousands. It eventually outgrew the Waldorf and thus the move to Las Vegas was made. Higgins has been retired for 13 years now, so naturally he didn't attend this year's ceremony. Not that it matters. He would have never left the casino, anyway.
Well, that's all for today. Until the next time, I remain, Your Nascar Momma Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"
"Don't come here and grumble about going too fast. Get the hell out of the race car if you've got feathers on your legs or butt. Put a kerosene rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up there and eat that candy ass." -Dale Earnhardt - 1998 |
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